BHUBANESWAR: Union Joint Secretary of National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) Preeti Pant has sought involvement and active participation of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in different interventions for strengthening the programme.Speaking at a State-level workshop, Pant said the NHUM aims at meeting the health care needs of urban population by making essential services available to the poor and reducing their out of pocket expenses for treatment.
The programme implemented since 2014 primarily focuses on slum dwellers and other marginalised groups like rickshaw pullers, street vendors, railway and bus station coolies, homeless people, street children and construction site workers.
Health and Family Welfare Secretary Dr Pramod Meherda said the scheme is being implemented in 24 districts headquarters and 11 cities in the State. “As many as 85 urban PHCs and six urban CHCs are functioning and more than 63 lakh patients have received services at the health centres from March 2014 to February 2018 along with 89,343 patients who have received free specialist treatment under Ama Clinic services rendered at 83 urban health centres since December last,” he said.
Deliberating on the capacity building, NHM Director Shalini Pandit said ULB representatives, medical officer, paramedical staff, Mahila Arogya Samiti (MAS), Ward Kalyan Samitis (WKS) and Rogi Kalyan Samitis (RKS) have been trained as per special training modules to extend the services.“People can take advantage of the scheme as the Out Patient Department in the urban health centres are open during both morning and evening hours,” she said.
While roles and responsibilities of ULBs, best practices in different parts of the State, various new programmes and schemes of the Government were discussed, resource persons from Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, Kolkota Municipal Corporation, academic institutions and development partners attended the workshop.
As many as 85 urban PHCs and six urban CHCs are functioning and more than 63 lakh patients have received services at the health centres from March 2014 to February 2018 along with 89,343 patients who have received free specialist treatment under Ama Clinic services rendered at 83 urban health centres since December last - Dr Pramod Meherda, Secretary, Health and Family Welfare